Method of knitting pile fabric



Jan. 4, 1966 D. J. CASSADY 3,226,952

METHOD OF KNITTING FILE FABRIC Filed Aug. 27, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

DEVON J. CRSSHDY.

WM 0W A TTORNE Y Jan. 4, 1966 D. J. CASSADY 3,

METHOD OF KNITTING FILE FABRIC Filed Aug. 27, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. DEVON J- CRSSADY.

P f===== P QWQQMMQ A TTORNE Y United States Patent 3,226,952 METHOD 0F KNITTING PlLE FAERE C Devon .7. Cassady, Norristown, Pa, assignor to Wildman Jacquard (1d,, Norristown, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Aug. 27, 1964, Ser. No. 392,453 Claims. (Cl. 66-9) This invention pertains to improvements in knitted single-faced high pile fabric and to the method of knitting the same.

More particularly, this invention pertains to a method of producing a pile fabric in which the plain knit backing will not be discolored by the staple fibers or" the pile, and to the fabric produced thereby.

It is a general object of the invention to devise a method whereby a pile fabric may be produced in which the tufts of pile fibers of one or more colors will not shOW through the reverse side, which may be of a different color.

It is a further object of the invention to produce a pile fabric in which the uniformity of fiber distribution is controlled through a method of placing and interlacing a tuft of pile at an exact location upon each stitch.

It is a further object to produce a more desirable fabric by the elimination of the rib efect which has custo-. marily appeared on the back of such material due to uneven distribution of sliver to the needles.

It is a further object of the invention to device a method of producing a high pile material on which the reverse side will be smooth and will retain the base yarn color.

It is astill further object to produce a material in which the high pile will extend out straighter from the base yarn and be more upright than has been the case heretofore.

It is a further object of the invention to produce a knitted material with a required pile thickness while using less sliver than was previously needed.

A further object is that of devising a simple and effective method of knitting such fabrics wherein the quality of both the pile side and the reverse side may be controlled and thereby the desirability of the material will be increased.

These and other objects of the invention will become apparent as further details are disclosed.

Single-faced high pile fabrics, knitted in a manner to include a tuft of generally parallelized staple fibers with the loops of a base fabric, are well known in the art. it has been customary for a dolfer cylinder to receive the staple fiber from a card and as the knitting needles rose in a suitable wave in order to take a base yarn, their hooks would also enter the teeth of the dolfer and there draw a tuft of f1 ers which would, with the base yarn, form a needle loop. The tufts, when knitted in this manner, will naturally project toward the inside of the fabric tube as knitted, that is, the back of the jersey fabric which constitutes the base for the pile material.

The operation described above has produced a pile fabric which has been highly satisfactory in many Ways, but this method has caused an interniixing of the fibers in the tufts and base yarn and has resulted in a misplaited or mottled appearance to the jersey side, or that side in reverse of the pile. Where contrasting colors were used, the appearance of the jersey side has not been quite what might be desired but would result in a combination of both colors. There has been little or no control of the amount of pile fibers which might show on the jersey, or reverse, side of the material so that the appearance and color has been unpredictable.

According to the instant invention, a high pile fabric may be knitted wherein the staple fibers are restricted to the fabric face and are not noticeably intermixed so as Patented Jan. l, lilfifi to protrude through the backing. The color of the jersey backing will be clear without the mottled or rib effect usually associated with this type of material. The invcn tion may be performed on those machines referred to as Hi-Pile knitting machines which are manufactured and sold by Wildman Jacquard Co., of Norristown, Pennsylvama.

In United States Patent No. 3,052,111 to I. C. Howes, disclosure is made of a method for producing pile fabric on a united needle knitting machine of the Tompkins type. In this patent the pile fibers are introduced into the needle hook after the needle has formed and still holds a needle loop of base yarn. The pile fibers and loop are forced downward upon the needle shank as a new yarn is ed to the hook to become a new loop when both the pile fibers and the first loop are drawn upward of the needle and cast off.

In the instant application .a novel method is shown for introducing the pile fibers into an empty needle hook and placing them in a proper position upon the previously drawn needle loop. The ends of the tuft of fibers are then blown beneath the nib of an inwardly moved sinker which holds both the tuft of fibers and the needle loop securely as the needle is raised. Base yarn is then fed to the hook and forms a new course when it is drawn through the previously drawn needle loop and tuft of fibers. The sinker is again moved inwardly to hold the new loop as the needle is raised to receive pile fibers and the cycle is repeated.

The invention will appear more clearly from the following detailed description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, showing by way of example, a preferred embodiment of the inventive idea, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a section through a portion of a knitting machine upon which the invention may be practiced;

FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 show in elevation the steps whereby a particular needle is caused to place a tuft of fibers upon a previously formed needle loop of base yarn;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a group of tufts of pile being positioned by the force of an air jet;

FIGS. 6 and 7 show in elevation the final steps of knitting a loop of base yarn through the previously formed loop and the tuft of pile;

FIG. 8 is a section of fabric, greatly enlarged, showing the tufts of pile in position and knitted in by the subsequent course of needle loops; and

P16. 9 is an exploded diagrammatic View of the needles and sinkers, illustrating the elevations of the needles during the sequence of steps shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 6, and 7 and also those points at which the sinkers are advanced and retracted.

Now referring to FIG. 1, the invention may be performed on an open top independent needle knitting machine having a needle cylinder'll, cam cylinder 12, sinkers l3, needles l4, and a sinker cap 15 for directing the radial motion of the sinkers.

In the preferred embodiment disclosed, the invention is shown in relation to a jersey knitting machine, having a number of fiber presenting card dotting cylinders such as' are set forth in US. Patent No. 1,114,414 to Tauber. Other means could be applied to present carded staple fibers to the open hooks of a series of needles without departing from the intent of the instant invention. A loose pile feeding station, generally designated 16, will not be explained in detail as the operation of this type of mechanism is well known and is also completely disclosed in the above patent. A card cylinder i7 is adapted to rotate and furnish a desired quantity of pile fibers in a generally parallel condition to a doller cylinder 18 which is positioned above the series of rotating needles 14 in a manner Well known in the knitting art.

The method of the invention may best be explained by the repetitive steps which occur for each course of needle loops inserted into the material. Although it is shown that a tuft of fibers is positioned upon each needle loop of each course, variations are quite possible by omitting tufts of fibers at any desired loop of course.

In FIG. 2 the needle 14 has been raised, in a well known manner, upwardly through a needle loop 19 of a first course of the base fabric. The sinker 13 had been moved inwardly to a holding position to restrain the loop 19 from being drawn upwardly with the needle (FIG. 9). As the needle rose, the latch 20 was opened by its contact with the loop 19 and the needle hook 21 is passed through the wires 22 of the doffer 18 and has collected a tuft of staple fibers 23. FIG. 9 shows, by the letter A, the points where the sinkers 13 are advanced inwardly to a holding position, and by the letter R, the points where they are retracted.

FIG. 3 shows the sinker 13 retracted and FIG. 4 shows the needle 14 drawn downwardly to an intermediate posi tion to incorporate the tuft of fibers 23 with the previously formed loop 19, but the needle does not cast off this loop. A jet of air from a nozzle 24 (FIG. will blow the ends of the tuft 23 across the sinker toward the back of the fabric and they will be trapped in that position together with the loop 19 beneath the nib 28 when the sinker is again moved inwardly. A brush or hook type latch opener (not shown) may be positioned at this point to assure latch opening. The needle 14 is then raised to receive the base yarn 25 at the yarn feeding station 26 (FIG. 6) and then is lowered to the knitting position and knits a second course of needle loops 27 (FIG. 7), simultaneously casting off the first course 19 and its positioned tuft of fibers 23. In this manner, each tuft of pile is separately placed upon a previously formed needle loop and is knitted therewith by the subsequently formed needle loop.

The instant invention discloses an improved method for positioning a tuft of fibers by use of a jet of air and of holding it in position by means of the sinker nib in the formation of a single-faced pile fabric. The prime advantage of the instant method over those of the prior art is the possible distinct color separation between the high pile on one side and the knitted backing. Fabric formed in the manner disclosed herein will have a clear, smooth backing without the mottled appearance which was unavoidable previously and will allow for greater styling effects with contrasting colors.

The method has been shown in relation to an independent needle knitting machine having needles of the latch type, but it should be understood that the invention may be practiced with spring beard needles with similar favorable results.

While one embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive concept may be carried out in a number of Ways. This invention is, therefore, not to be limited to the precise details described, but is intended to embrace all variations and modifications thereof falling Within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims.

I claim:

1. A method of knitting a single-faced pile fabric which comprises the steps of forming a first course of needle loops of a base fabric at the knitting position, incorporating individual loose tufts of stable fibers with said formed loops, blowing the ends of said tufts by directing a jet of air toward the back of said fabric, holding said first course of needle loops and said tufts at a holding position, and drawing a second course of needle loops through said first loops and said tufts of fibers.

' 2. A method of knitting a pile fabric on an independent needle knitting machine having a plurality of sinkers which comprises the steps of forming a first course of needle loops of a base fabric at the knitting position, moving said sinkers inwardly over said loops at a holding position, raising said needles to a position for accepting individual loose tufts of staple fibers, withdrawing said sinkers from said holding position, incorporating said tufts with said formed loops by lowering said needles to an intermediate position, moving said sinkers inwardly a second time over said loops and said tufts at said holding position, moving said needles upwardly through said loops and said tufts, withdrawing said sinkers a second time, and drawing a second course of needle loops downwardly through said first needle loops and said tufts of fibers.

3. A method of knitting a single-faced pile fabric on an independent needle knitting machine having a plurality of sinkers which comprises the steps of forming a first course of needle loops of a base fabric at the knitting position, moving said sinkers over said loops at a holding position, raising said needles to a position for accepting individual loose tufts of staple fibers, withdrawing said sinkers from said holding position, incorporating said tufts with said formed loops by lowering said needles to an intermediate position, blowing the ends of said tufts across said sinkers by directing a jet of air toward the back of said fabric, moving said sinkers over said loops and said tufts at said holding position, moving said needles upwardly through said loops and said tufts, withdrawing said sinkers a second time, and drawing a second course of needle loops downwardly simultaneously casting off said first needle loops and said tufts of fibers.

4. A method of knitting single-faced high pile fabric on a circular knitting machine having independent knitting instrumentalities, sinkers, at least one yarn feeding station and at least one loose pile feeding station which comprises the steps of forming a first course of needle loops of a base fabric at the knitting position, moving said sinkers inwardly to hold down said loops, raising said instrumentalities to accept pile at said pile feeding station, withdrawing said sinkers from said loops, lowering said instrumentalities to incorporate individual tufts of pile with said formed loops without casting off said tufts and said loops, blowing the ends of said tufts across said sinkers by directing a jet of air toward the back of said fabric, moving said sinkers over said loops and said tufts, moving said instrumentalities upwardly to accept yarn at said yarn feeding station, withdrawing said sinkers from holding said loops and said tufts, and lowering said instrumentalities to knit a second course of needle loops while simultaneously knitting said tufts of fibers into said first course of loops.

5. A method of knitting on a circular machine having a plurality of needles, a plurality of sinkers with sinker nibs, at least one air nozzle for directing a jet of air, a pile fabric comprised of a base yarn having interknitted therewith tufts of staple fibers which comprises the steps of:

(1) raising said needles to a position to be fed individual loose tufts of staple fibers,

(2) lowering said needles to an intermediate position,

(3) trapping said tufts beneath said sinker nibs at said intermediate position and raising said needles to a position to be fed a base yarn,

(4) then drawing said base yarn through previously drawn stitches of base yarn and through said previously trapped tufts.

References Dited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,114,414 10/1914 Tauber 66-9 2,094,180 9/1937 Mishcon 669 2,261,595 11/1941 St. Pierre 669 3,014,355 12/1961 Hill 66-9 3,115,024 l2/l963 Walrabenstein 669 X DONALD W. PARKER, Primary Examiner.

RUSSELL C. MADER, Examiner. 

1. A METHOD OF KNITTING A SINGLE-FACED PILE FABRIC WHICH COMPRISES THE STEPS OF FORMING A FIRST COURSE OF NEEDLE LOOPS OF A BASE FABRIC AT THE KNITTING POSITION, INCORPORATING INDIVIDUAL LOOSE TUFTS OF STABLE FIBERS WITH SAID FORMED LOOPS, BLOWING THE ENDS OF SAID TUFTS BY DIRECTING A JET OF AIR TOWARD THE BACK OF SAID FABRIC, HOLDING SAID FIRST COURSE OF NEEDLE LOOPS AND SAID TUFTS AT A HOLDING POSITION, AND DRAWING A SECOND COURSE OF NEEDLE LOOPS THROUGH SAID FIRST LOOPS AND SAID TUTFS OF FIBERS. 